Buscema: Girardi is trapped

Not only would he have to follow Joe Torre in the dugout, but now, by the oddest of happenstances, Joe Girardi would have to follow an act nearly as tough in his first official day on the job.

Dave Buscema

New York

Not only would he have to follow Joe Torre in the dugout, but now, by the oddest of happenstances, Joe Girardi would have to follow an act nearly as tough in his first official day on the job.

As apologetic as he had been appreciative, and classy, and passionate and — well, just him — Don Mattingly regretted unwittingly calling his own conference call to discuss his departure from the Yankees right before the one introducing Girardi as the club's new manager.

Mattingly had considered switching it when he found out, but people still wanted to hear what he had to say, he was told.

So there was nothing he could do but cast one more stifling shadow upon Girardi, even after declining the Yankees' offer to remain as bench coach because he did not want to hang over his old colleague's head.

"For me "¦ I don't think (I'm) dismissing it forever," Mattingly said of eventually returning to the Yankees. "I don't think it would be fair to anyone who got that job if I was still on that coaching staff. It's just not right. "¦ Joe thought that I could do that, that he would be comfortable with that, but I just don't think it would be the right thing."

So Mattingly was off to the rumors of reuniting with Torre with the Dodgers, sounding at peace with his freedom from the Yankees even while admitting he would always have a connection, promising that "if the Yankees are playing the Red Sox, I'm rooting for the Yankees." He did "not have vengeance running through him," only the usual class and passion along with a conviction and fire that seemed stronger than ever.

He vowed he would manage some day, even after stirring thoughts of his endless hours in the batting cage by refuting reports he had once been promised the job by George Steinbrenner and adding he shouldn't have been either, because "you have to earn your place and prove you can do something."

OK, Joe, you've got the, uh floor "¦

Who would have wanted to follow that?

Who would have wanted to follow Torre for that matter?

So this is where Girardi's career in the latest edition of the Bronx Zoo starts off — trapped between the specter of the past and the possibility of the future.

You can't help but wonder a little if Girardi might not just end up eventually being the sacrificial lamb after Torre's departure.

You can't help but wonder if eventually Mattingly could return after more time has passed and the shoes are not as big to fill. While he was wise and kind enough to recognize his popularity could make people push for him at the first sign of a losing streak if he was nearby, that can still happen eventually from afar.

This is what hangs over Girardi's head, from all sides now, as he tries to replace one icon while beating out another for the job.

Girardi, to his credit, has no problem taking on that challenge, saying he was told the same thing when he came to the Yankees as a catcher and Mike Stanley had been popular.

"Well, I wear a size 13 "¦" Girardi remembered saying then when told he had big shoes to fill.

It was one of the few glimpses of personality and humor from a man who more often will attempt to keep things "in-house" as he said when asked for details of his stormy relationship with the Marlins.

He will have to manage the heck out of this team to survive through all these shadows.

He will have to prove everyone who believes in the rigid taskmaster approach right, by backing up that goal he so firmly stated that he wants to be "in the Fall Classic next October."

That's easier said than done with the Red Sox as strong as ever and the Yankees still recovering from one of their wildest months ever.

Girardi brings a lot of strong traits to the table, from solid in-game management to that manager of the year award on his resume.

But he also brings the questions of how he'll deal with everything from a prying press to the meddling of Little Stein and company.

He can most certainly succeed and many will be eager to see that fresh voice, because it's easier to believe in fire when it comes smoking out of the surface instead of raging within.

But he has a tremendous task in front of him and some shoes bigger even than those size 13s to fill now.

He's got one shadow behind him and another in front and somewhere in between Girardi will have to prove he can make this all work.